SIA Flashback – A Half-Hour History of Turbochargers

Funny how history repeats itself. During the fuel crises of the 1970s, many automotive engineers latched on to turbochargers as a means of reducing weight and thus saving fuel while maintaining the power outputs we’re used to. During the fuel crisis of the last couple years, turbochargers suddenly became en vogue again. But as Jan P. Norbye wrote for SIA #53, October 1979, turbochargers have been around for much longer than that, mostly in planes, but also in diesel-powered trucks and automobiles of the 1960s.